Potato bag

Are you short on garden space but still want a crop of universally delicious starch bombs?

Depending on the variety and your growing zone, you can plant potatoes in a container or bag in early to late spring. There are three main categories of potatoes you can grow in your grow bag:

• First early: These spuds will be ready for harvest in about 10 weeks.
• Second early: These potatoes will be ready for harvest in about 13 weeks.
• Maincrop: These are usually the big guys used for baking and mashing and are ready for harvest in about 20 weeks.

The great news about learning how to grow potatoes in a bag is that you can plant any category of potato and yield a healthy crop. I recommend using seed potatoes to start your potato crop in a container or grow bag. These are potatoes grown specifically to be used for growing and won’t have as many chemicals and even potential germs that store-bought potatoes will have. I like to sprout my seed potatoes before I plant them. This can be done easily by placing them in a cool, light-filled room.

There’s a lot of options out there when learning how to grow potatoes in a bag. You can buy specially designed potato grow bags at your garden store or online. They come in various materials like fabric and heavy plastic and are relatively inexpensive. I’ve also seen folks re-purpose thick, reusable grocery bags and even big blue Ikea shopping bags. Burlap sacks can be used for potato growing. If you’re in a bind you can even use a medium-sized garbage bag, though you’ll only be able to use it for one season.

Fill your potting bag with soil. Place the bag in an area where it can receive full sunlight, at least 6 hours each day. Try to avoid putting the bag on a surface that will get too hot, like concrete or asphalt, since that will damage the plants. After your potato plants grow about 8 to 10 inches, add another few inches of soil. Water thoroughly. You’ll want to keep doing this when the stems grow to be about 8 to 10 inches above the soil line. Repeat this until the bag is topped off. Alternatively, you can use hay or thick mulch instead of soil. Once your grow bag is full just continue to water regularly.

How do you grow your potatoes? In the ground or in containers? Please share your tips with us.